EP2841876B1 - Procédé et appareil améliorés pour effectuer une compensation de voile de roulement pour alignement de roues de véhicule - Google Patents

Procédé et appareil améliorés pour effectuer une compensation de voile de roulement pour alignement de roues de véhicule Download PDF

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Publication number
EP2841876B1
EP2841876B1 EP13781271.5A EP13781271A EP2841876B1 EP 2841876 B1 EP2841876 B1 EP 2841876B1 EP 13781271 A EP13781271 A EP 13781271A EP 2841876 B1 EP2841876 B1 EP 2841876B1
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EP
European Patent Office
Prior art keywords
camber
toe
wheels
wheel
wheel angle
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EP13781271.5A
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German (de)
English (en)
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EP2841876A1 (fr
EP2841876A4 (fr
Inventor
Robert J. D'AGOSTINO
George M. Gill
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Snap On Inc
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Snap On Inc
Snap On Tools Corp
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Publication of EP2841876A4 publication Critical patent/EP2841876A4/fr
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    • G—PHYSICS
    • G01—MEASURING; TESTING
    • G01B—MEASURING LENGTH, THICKNESS OR SIMILAR LINEAR DIMENSIONS; MEASURING ANGLES; MEASURING AREAS; MEASURING IRREGULARITIES OF SURFACES OR CONTOURS
    • G01B21/00—Measuring arrangements or details thereof, where the measuring technique is not covered by the other groups of this subclass, unspecified or not relevant
    • G01B21/22—Measuring arrangements or details thereof, where the measuring technique is not covered by the other groups of this subclass, unspecified or not relevant for measuring angles or tapers; for testing the alignment of axes
    • G01B21/26—Measuring arrangements or details thereof, where the measuring technique is not covered by the other groups of this subclass, unspecified or not relevant for measuring angles or tapers; for testing the alignment of axes for testing wheel alignment
    • G—PHYSICS
    • G01—MEASURING; TESTING
    • G01B—MEASURING LENGTH, THICKNESS OR SIMILAR LINEAR DIMENSIONS; MEASURING ANGLES; MEASURING AREAS; MEASURING IRREGULARITIES OF SURFACES OR CONTOURS
    • G01B11/00—Measuring arrangements characterised by the use of optical techniques
    • G01B11/26—Measuring arrangements characterised by the use of optical techniques for measuring angles or tapers; for testing the alignment of axes
    • G01B11/275—Measuring arrangements characterised by the use of optical techniques for measuring angles or tapers; for testing the alignment of axes for testing wheel alignment
    • G01B11/2755—Measuring arrangements characterised by the use of optical techniques for measuring angles or tapers; for testing the alignment of axes for testing wheel alignment using photoelectric detection means
    • G—PHYSICS
    • G01—MEASURING; TESTING
    • G01B—MEASURING LENGTH, THICKNESS OR SIMILAR LINEAR DIMENSIONS; MEASURING ANGLES; MEASURING AREAS; MEASURING IRREGULARITIES OF SURFACES OR CONTOURS
    • G01B2210/00—Aspects not specifically covered by any group under G01B, e.g. of wheel alignment, caliper-like sensors
    • G01B2210/10—Wheel alignment
    • G01B2210/16—Active or passive device attached to the chassis of a vehicle
    • G—PHYSICS
    • G01—MEASURING; TESTING
    • G01B—MEASURING LENGTH, THICKNESS OR SIMILAR LINEAR DIMENSIONS; MEASURING ANGLES; MEASURING AREAS; MEASURING IRREGULARITIES OF SURFACES OR CONTOURS
    • G01B2210/00—Aspects not specifically covered by any group under G01B, e.g. of wheel alignment, caliper-like sensors
    • G01B2210/10—Wheel alignment
    • G01B2210/28—Beam projector and related sensors, camera, inclinometer or other active sensing or projecting device
    • G—PHYSICS
    • G01—MEASURING; TESTING
    • G01B—MEASURING LENGTH, THICKNESS OR SIMILAR LINEAR DIMENSIONS; MEASURING ANGLES; MEASURING AREAS; MEASURING IRREGULARITIES OF SURFACES OR CONTOURS
    • G01B2210/00—Aspects not specifically covered by any group under G01B, e.g. of wheel alignment, caliper-like sensors
    • G01B2210/10—Wheel alignment
    • G01B2210/30—Reference markings, reflector, scale or other passive device

Definitions

  • the present subject matter relates to automotive wheel alignment systems and methods.
  • the present subject matter has particular applicability to determining true values of wheel camber and toe angles.
  • wheel runout must be determined and subtracted from the measured camber and toe values.
  • Conventional vehicle wheel alignment systems compensate for runout by taking camber and toe measurements with 180° rotations between the two measurement positions. By averaging these two measurements for each of camber and toe, the true camber/toe values are calculated without directly estimating runout.
  • this technique requires a vehicle lift of considerable length, since a typical wheel will move a significant distance (e.g., about 101,6 cm (40 inches)) during the 180° roll process.
  • US 2009/027662 A1 discloses a sensing head and system. Alternative operation modes are provided when one or more functional modules or components fail. Self-diagnoses and tests are provided to isolate and identify sources of malfunctions.
  • US 2005/027473 A1 discloses methods for measuring and calculating wheel alignment angles.
  • the measuring methods include mitigating alignment error by compensating for wheel runout, and further include measuring wheel runout while the wheel maintains contact with an alignment surface.
  • the teachings herein improve over conventional rolling runout techniques by providing a methodology and systems for estimating runout using small rollback angles.
  • a method and system wherein a plurality of sets of camber and toe measurements are acquired for a pair of vehicle wheels, each at a different, relatively small rollback angle. For example, three sets of measurements are taken rolling the vehicle more than 0° and less than 180° from the last wheel position; e.g., about 20° to about 40° from the last wheel position, between measurements.
  • best fit sine waves are computed for each of the camber and toe measurements, and the best fit parameters are applied to compute runout at the current wheel angle. The computed runouts are subtracted from the measured camber and toe values to get true camber and toe values of the pair of wheels.
  • a method comprises acquiring a plurality of sets of camber and toe measurement values for a pair of vehicle wheels, each set being acquired at a different wheel angle obtained by rolling the wheels from an initial wheel angle, wherein one of the wheel angles is a current wheel angle.
  • the method further comprises calculating best fit sine waves for camber and toe using a least squares analysis and the sets of camber and toe measurement values; computing camber runout and toe runout at the current wheel angle using the calculated sine waves; subtracting the respective computed runouts from the measured camber and toe measurement values at the current wheel angle to obtain true camber and toe values for the pair of wheels; and displaying the true camber and toe values.
  • a wheel alignment system comprises a pair of passive heads, each comprising a target, for mounting in association with a first pair of wheels of a vehicle that is to be measured by operation of the wheel alignment system; and a pair of active sensing heads for mounting in association with a second pair of wheels of the vehicle.
  • Each respective one of the active sensing heads comprises an image sensor for producing image data including a representation of an image of one of the targets.
  • At least one of the active sensing heads comprises at least one tilt sensor for sensing a tilt angle of the one active sensing head when the one active sensing head is mounted on a wheel of the vehicle.
  • the system further comprise means for determining a spatial relationship between the active sensing heads when the active sensing heads are mounted on wheels of the vehicle; a display; and a computer.
  • the computer is for processing image data relating to observation of the targets, the sensed tilt angle, and relationship data from the means for determining the spatial relationship, to compute a plurality of sets of camber and toe measurement values for the second pair of vehicle wheels when the active sensing heads are mounted on the second pair of vehicle wheels.
  • Each set of measurement values are computed at a different wheel angle obtained by a user rolling the wheels from an initial wheel angle, wherein one of the wheel angles is a current wheel angle.
  • the computer is also for calculating best fit sine waves for camber and toe using a least squares analysis and the sets of camber and toe measurement values; computing camber runout and toe runout at the current wheel angle using the calculated sine waves; subtracting the respective computed runouts from the measured camber and toe measurement values at the current wheel angle to obtain true camber and toe values for the second pair of wheels; and causing the true camber and toe values for the second pair of wheels to be displayed on the display.
  • Wheel mounted sensors are employed in various wheel alignment systems. They enable the direct measure of wheel camber and toe angles from tilt sensors contained in the wheel mounted sensor system. However, since the wheel mounted sensor sags, toe and camber measurements from the wheel mounted sensors do not lie entirely in the wheel plane. Thus, toe and camber measurements from a wheel mounted sensor will not be true measurements of toe and camber in the wheel. Instead, measurements from a wheel mounted sensor will be equal to the true measurements shifted by a sinusoidal component. The sinusoidal variation in true toe and camber is known as runout.
  • FIG. 1 shows measurements from a typical wheel mounted sensor as it rotates through a complete 360° revolution.
  • the solid line 1000 represents the measured cambers and the solid line 1001 represents the measured toes as the wheel rotates through 360°.
  • This simulated wheel alignment sensor system has a runout amplitude of 0.2° and a runout phase angle of 20° when the sensor is in the vertical position.
  • Camber runout is represented by dashed line 1000a and toe runout is represented by dashed line 1001a.
  • the simulated wheel has a true camber of 0.7° and a true toe of 0.4°.
  • the goal of the alignment process is to determine the true cambers 1000b and toes 1001b of the wheels (straight lines with circle markers). To get the true values, runout must be determined and subtracted from the measured cambers and toes.
  • a direct way to estimate the true camber and toe is to take camber and toe measurements with 180° rotations between the two measurement positions.
  • each camber / toe measurement will contain equal and opposite quantities of camber and toe runout.
  • the downside to this approach is that a vehicle lift of considerable length is required.
  • a typical 63,5 cm (25) diameter wheel will move roughly 99 cm (39") during the 180° roll process.
  • This procedure will thus not be usable for many users with shorter lifts unless they perform the 180° roll with the vehicle jacked up off its wheels (a labor intensive process that users seek to avoid). For this reason it is desirable to perform rolling runout with as small a required rotation as is possible.
  • ⁇ i is the wheel rotation angle
  • A is the runout amplitude (in degrees)
  • ⁇ is the phase angle
  • C t is the true camber of the wheel
  • T t is the true toe. Measured camber / toe is clearly a function of angle, and by measuring camber / toe at sufficiently many rotation angles it is possible to compute any of the unknown quantities in equations 1 or 2.
  • the disclosed short rolling runout technique differs from the prior art in that runout parameters are not computed analytically. Instead, least squares best fit estimates are computed for the unknown parameters in the camber and toe equations. Least squares estimates have the advantage of utilizing data redundancy in the form of an overdetermined system of equations to improve the estimation of unknown parameters. Data redundancy is crucial for accurately determining runout over small rollback angles with small numbers of measurements.
  • the disclosed short rolling runout procedure is simple to use. From the perspective of the end user, all that must be done is to acquire at least two measurements sets, where each measurement set consists of a camber, a toe, and a distinct wheel rotation angle measurement. The more measurements sets acquired, the more overdetermined the system of equations, and the better the estimates of the unknown runout parameters.
  • the camber / toe unknowns could be directly estimated with at least 3 sets of measurements.
  • 3 measurement sets as inputs to each of Equations 1 and 2 there would be essentially no advantage with a least squares fit over direct computation methods.
  • Runout is the oscillatory component about the "true" value for each of the measured camber and toe values.
  • toe runout 1001a is equivalent to camber runout 1000a with a 90° phase shift (as cos() is phase shifted +90° from sin()).
  • Equations 3 and 4 we do not directly measure runout, but we indirectly infer the unknown parameters from changes in measured camber C m and measured toe T m .
  • Equation 8 can be recast further still.
  • M total number of measurement changes that can be computed from the measurements sets obtained (total number of camber chambers or toe changes or rollback angle changes).
  • ⁇ is the 1 row x M column vector of camber and toe measurement changes
  • ⁇ is the 1 row x 2 columns vector of unknown parameters
  • Equation 9 the vector of unknown parameters in this system of linear equations.
  • ⁇ + denotes the pseudoinverse of the matrix ⁇ .
  • Nonlinear least squares methods like the Gauss-Newton method, the Levenberg-Marquardt method, and other iterative algorithms could also be applied.
  • the disclosed procedure improves over prior methods for rolling runout compensation which employ deterministic equations involving the bare minimum number of measurements, because such prior methods are less robust against measurement error.
  • Equation 6 A significant advantage of the equation rearrangement performed in Equations 6 through 10 is not readily apparent until multiple sets of measurements (greater than two) are obtained. For the case of 2 sets of measurements (as in Equation 8) there are 2 equations to solve for the 2 unknowns ⁇ 0 and ⁇ 1 . For numbers of measurement sets greater than 2, however, we have an overdetermined system of equations from which we can partially reduce the effects of measurement error in camber / toe.
  • Equations 9 and 10 are valid for any number of measurements sets N ⁇ 2. But the arrays of "knowns", ⁇ and ⁇ , must be expanded to incorporate the larger numbers of known quantities into the least squares solution for the vector B of unknowns.
  • else , A
  • the disclosed short rolling runout algorithm affords multiple advantages over the prior methods for estimating runout from a limited number of measurements over a small rotation angle.
  • the use of least squares estimation with overdetermined systems of equations provides better statistical estimates of the unknown runout parameters (amplitude and phase angle) than direct solutions with the bare minimum number of measurements. All else being equal, runout estimates are more accurate for larger total wheel rotation angles (from start to finish), as relative measurement error is smaller for larger wheel rotations.
  • least squares estimation allows compensation for larger relative measurement errors associated with smaller total rotation angles by obtaining more measurements at smaller wheel angle changes between individual measurement sets.
  • least squares estimates allow one to get a metric for the quality of the fit estimation. If the best fit error residuals are too large (or the conditioning of the pseudoinverse matrix is too poor), the user can be warned in real-time to perform a more labor intensive runout compensation (i.e. a 180° wheel rotation angle or a jacked runout measurement). With conventional direct runout solution methods there is no such warning, as the bare minimum number of measurements are used to compute runout.
  • FIGS. 2-10 Exemplary alignment systems embodying the disclosed short rolling runout methodology will now be described with reference to FIGS. 2-10 .
  • hybrid alignment systems are also described in U.S. Patent 7,313,869 to Rogers . It should be understood that the hybrid alignment systems of FIGS. 2-10 are not the only system environments in which the disclosed short rolling runout techniques can be embodied. The disclosed techniques could also be embodied in a conventional machine vision aligner, such as disclosed in U.S. Patent 5,724,743 to Jackson .
  • FIGS. 2-10 provide relatively low cost alignment systems that are "hybrid" in that they combine aspects of image processing with one or more other types of measurement technologies.
  • a hybrid system uses visible targets, e.g. on passive heads, for two wheels of a vehicle under test, and the system uses a combination of optical imaging sensors (e.g. cameras) and other alignment sensors in active sensing heads that attach to two other wheels of the vehicle.
  • the passive heads are substantially cheaper to manufacture than heads used in conventional alignment systems.
  • the cost of the active sensing heads may be generally comparable to the cost of two heads of a conventional wheel alignment system.
  • Measuring the position and orientation of the front wheels of the vehicle using imaging technology offers additional advantages, including the ability to derive measurements associated with image processing based wheel alignment that are not normally available in a low cost system. These additional measurements may include scrub radius, ( U.S. Pat. No. 6,532,062 ), roll radius ( U.S. Pat. No. 6,237,234 ), and caster trail ( U.S. Pat. No. 6,661,751 ).
  • FIG. 2 depicts a first arrangement of targets and active sensing heads in relation to wheels of a vehicle 20 that is under test, e.g. to measure one or more wheel alignment parameters. Except for the wheels, elements of the vehicle are omitted for ease of illustration.
  • the wheel alignment system includes a pair of passive heads 21 and 23 mounted on respective wheels 22 and 24 of the vehicle, which are front steering wheels in this first example.
  • the active sensing heads 25 and 27 are adapted for mounting in association with other respective wheels 26 and 28 of the vehicle, in this case the rear wheels.
  • Each active sensing head includes an image sensor 29 or 31 for producing image data, which is expected to include an image of a passive target when the various heads are mounted to the respective wheels of the vehicle 20.
  • the image sensors 29 and 31 in the active sensing heads 25 and 27 are two dimensional (2D) imaging devices, e.g. cameras.
  • the heads 21 and 23 are passive in that they include targets but do not include any sensing elements.
  • Each of the passive heads 21 and 23 includes a target of a type that may be observed by one of the image sensors 29 or 31 in the active heads 25 and 27.
  • a target on a passive head 21 or 23, for image sensing by a sensor on another head, may be active or passive.
  • An active target such as a light emitting diode (LED), is a source driven by power to emit energy (e.g. IR or visible light) that may be detected by a sensor.
  • a passive target is an element that is not driven by power and does not emit energy for detection by a sensor.
  • a passive target would be an object that reflects (or does not reflect) light or other energy in a manner detectable by the respective image sensor.
  • the targets could comprise one or more light emitting elements, the targets comprise light and dark regions that can be detected when illuminated by other sources and imaged by cameras or the like in the active sensing heads 25 and 27.
  • FIG. 2A A first example of a target that can be used on either of the passive wheel heads 21 is illustrated in FIG. 2A .
  • the target is rectangular.
  • FIG. 2B A second example of a target that can be used on either of the passive wheel heads 21 is illustrated in FIG. 2B .
  • the target is circular.
  • the target consists of a flat plate with a pattern of differently sized circles marked on or mounted on the surface of the plate in a pre-determined format and pattern.
  • FIGS. 2A and 2B specific patterns are shown FIGS. 2A and 2B , it will be evident that a large number of different patterns can be used on each target. For example, a larger or smaller number of dots may be included and other sizes and shapes can be used for the dots.
  • multifaceted plates or objects can also be used for the targets. Many examples utilize a number of retro-reflective elements arranged to form each target. For further information, attention is directed to U.S. Pat. No. 5,724,743 to Jackson .
  • the system also includes a spatial relationship sensor associated with at least one of the active sensing heads 25 or 27.
  • the spatial relationship sensor enables measurement of the spatial relationship between the active sensing heads 25 and 27 when the active sensing heads are mounted on wheels of the vehicle.
  • spatial relationship sensors may measure relative position and/or orientation, depending on the type of sensor used.
  • a positional measurement refers to the relative position of the measured item from the perspective or in the coordinate system of the measuring device. Measurement of position generally uses a standard coordinate system such as Cartesian coordinates or polar coordinates.
  • Orientation may be derived from a three-dimensional position measurement, or orientation may be measured independently of position.
  • Orientation relates to the rotational position of the measured device with respect to the measuring device expressed in a standard coordinate system.
  • Orientation is generally expressed in rotational angles in three orthogonal reference planes.
  • the wheel alignment systems discussed herein may be implemented with various different types of spatial relationship sensors.
  • the system uses two conventional (1D) angle sensors 33 and 35 to measure the relative angles of the active sensing heads 25 and 27, in the toe plane.
  • the active heads 25 and 27 also contain gravity sensors or the like to measure tilt, typically camber and pitch, of the head.
  • the head 25 includes one or more tilt sensors 37; and the head 27 includes one or more tilt sensors 39.
  • the system also includes a computer.
  • the computer processes image data relating to observation of the targets and tilt data, from the active sensing heads.
  • the computer also processes spatial relationship data from the at least one spatial relationship sensor. The data processing enables computation of at least one measurement of the vehicle.
  • Measurement using image processing techniques is fundamentally different than using conventional angle measurement technology in a wheel alignment system.
  • basic image processing techniques are known to those skilled in the art, a brief description is presented for clarity.
  • the image of a body varies according to the perspective from which such body is viewed and the variation in the image is directly related to and determinable from the perspective angle of the view path along which the body is viewed.
  • a mathematical representation, or data corresponding to a true image i.e. an image taken by viewing the target perpendicularly to its primary plane
  • the dimensions of the target are preprogrammed into the memory of the computer so that, during the alignment process, the computer has a reference image to which the viewed perspective images of the targets can be compared.
  • the way that the computer calculates the orientation of the target is to identify certain geometric characteristics on the target, take perspective measurements of these and compare these measurements with the true image previously preprogrammed into the memory of the computer.
  • the method and apparatus of this invention can be used to determine the exact position of the target in three-dimensional space. This can be done by firstly determining the perspective image of certain of the elements of the pattern on the target (for example, the distances between circles) and comparing the dimensions of this image to the true dimensions of those elements. This will yield the distance that the element and, accordingly, the target is from the image sensor.
  • the image sensor in the active head views a target attached to a wheel and produces image data which describes a perspective image of the target.
  • the computer correlates the perspective image data for the targets with the true shape of the target.
  • the computer relates the dimensions of certain known geometric elements of the target with the dimensions of corresponding elements in the perspective image and by performing certain trigonometric calculations (or by any other suitable mathematical or numerical methods), calculates the alignment of the wheel of the vehicle.
  • the computer can also calculate the three-dimensional position and orientation of the axis of rotation of the wheel (wheel axis) associated with the passive target.
  • FIG. 3 depicts a more comprehensive example of a low cost hybrid wheel alignment system 50 as well as four wheels 41, 43, 45 and 47 of a vehicle (otherwise not shown, for simplicity).
  • the system 50 includes four heads 51, 53, 55 and 57 for mounting on or otherwise in association with the wheels 41, 43, 45 and 47 as shown stylistically in the drawing.
  • the passive heads 51 and 53 are mounted on the front wheels 41 and 43, and the front heads 51 and 53 use retro-reflective targets.
  • the retro-reflective targets face rearward, so as to be observable by the image sensors in the respective active sensing heads.
  • the retro-reflective targets may be similar to those used in three-dimensional (3D) machine vision alignment systems.
  • the heads 55 and 57 mounted on the rear wheels 45 and 47 are active sensing heads, in that they include image sensing elements.
  • the heads 55 and 57 further include tilt and spatial relationship sensing elements, as discussed below, for obtaining information for processing by a host computer system 100 of the wheel alignment system 50.
  • An imaging sensor similar to the V3D camera, is positioned in each of rear heads.
  • the optical axis of each such camera faces forward along the track of the vehicle, in order to measure the position and orientation of the targets attached to the front wheels.
  • the cameras need not be directly on the track of the vehicle wheels, that is to say on the roll line of the wheels.
  • the cameras need only to face alongside the wheel track sufficiently to view and capture images of the targets on the passive heads 51, 53 associated with the front wheels.
  • the active sensing head 55 includes an image sensing module or the like containing an image sensor in the form of a camera 61 facing forward along the track of the left wheels. When so mounted, the field of view of the camera 61 includes the target portion of the passive head 51 mounted on the left front wheel 41.
  • the active sensing head 57 includes an image sensing module or the like containing an image sensor in the form of a camera 63 facing forward along the track of the right wheels.
  • the field of view of the camera 63 includes the target portion of the passive head 53 mounted on the right front wheel 43.
  • One or more sensors are attached to the rear heads 55, 57 and positioned to measure a spatial relationship between the two active sensing heads.
  • the active sensing head 55 includes a sensor 65; and the active sensing head 57 includes a sensor 67.
  • the sensors 65 and 67 in this application are used for sensing the relative angular relationship between the active sensing heads 55 and 57, whereas the image signals from the cameras 61 and 64 are processed to compute regular front wheel alignment parameters, such as camber and toe.
  • Each rear head 55 or 57 also incorporates one or more inclinometers, which are used as tilt sensors to measure the relative camber and pitch angles of each rear head to gravity.
  • inclinometers may comprise MEMS type devices designed to be integral to the track camera printed circuit board.
  • FIG. 4 is a side view of some of the wheel mounted components of the system. This left side view shows the left front head 51, with its passive target, attached to the left front wheel 41. The side view also shows the left rear active sensing head 55, attached to the left rear wheel 45. FIG. 4 also provides an enlarged detail view, partially in cross section, of elements of the active sensing head 55.
  • the head 55 comprises a housing 71.
  • Hardware for mounting the housing to the wheel is omitted for clarity.
  • the housing 71 contains the forward facing track camera 61.
  • the spatial relationship sensor 65 uses a beam angle detection technology, discussed later with regard to FIG. 7 , although other types of sensors may be used.
  • the housing also contains a keypad 74 for user activation of the head 55 and a printed circuit board 75 containing the data processing electronics for processing the data from the camera(s) and other sensors and communications with the host computer.
  • the board 75 also supports a pitch tilt sensor 77 and a camber tilt sensor 79.
  • the two tilt sensors 77, 79 may be elements of a single inclinometer module.
  • the sensors 77, 79 communicate inclination readings to a processor on the board 75, for transmission with the camera data to the host computer system 100.
  • FIGS. 5 and 6 are somewhat stylized illustrations of the active sensing head 55, in side and rear views, which illustrate the relationship of the axes measured by the tilt sensors to the other elements.
  • the tilt sensors 77-79 are elements of a single MEMS inclinometer.
  • the inclinometer determines the gravity vector with respect to the pitch plane ( FIG. 5 ) and the gravity vector with respect to the camber plane ( FIG. 6 ). Similar measurements, of course, are taken for the other active sensing head 57 ( FIG. 3 ).
  • each head's orientation to gravity can be processed to relate each track facing camera's optical axis to gravity ( FIGS. 5 and 6 ).
  • the relationship of each front target to gravity can also be measured by processing of the image data and the gravity vector data.
  • FIG. 7 is a functional block diagram of the elements of one of the active sensing heads, in this case the head 55, although the elements of the head 57 will be generally similar in this first example.
  • the active sensing head 55 includes an image sensing module 81 or the like containing an image sensor in the form of the track camera 61 which in use will face forward along the track of the left wheels to allow that camera to obtain images containing the target of the passive head 51 (see also FIG. 3 ).
  • the track facing image sensor module 81 illustrated in FIG. 7 , includes an LED array 83, serving as an illuminator, to emit light for desired illumination of the target on the head 51 mounted to the vehicle wheel 41 on the same side of the vehicle.
  • the camera 61 is a digital camera that senses the image for the wheel alignment application. In operation, the camera 61 generates a value of each image pixel based on analog intensity of the sensed light at the point in the image corresponding to the pixel. The value is digitized and read out to circuitry on the main printed circuit board 75. The value may be digitized either on or off of the camera sensor chip.
  • the spatial relationship sensor module 65 comprises an IR LED 85, an aperture 86 and a linear image sensor 87 such as a charge-coupled device (CCD) or CMOS unit.
  • the IR LED 85 projects a beam of light toward a similar toe sensor module in the opposite head 57.
  • the opposite head 57 includes an IR LED that projects a beam of light toward head 55.
  • the IR light/radiation from the IR LED of the opposing head 57 is sensed by the linear image sensor 87, via the aperture 86.
  • the precise point on the sensor 87 at which the IR light from the other head is detected indicates the relative angle of incidence of the light from the opposite head at the sensor 87 in the head 55.
  • the IR light/radiation from the IR LED 85 of the head 55 is sensed by the linear image sensor, via the aperture in the opposite head 57; the precise point on the opposite linear image sensor at which the IR light from the LED 85 is detected indicates the relative angle of incidence of the light from the head 55 at the linear sensor in head 57. Processing of the angle detection data from the two linear sensors enables determination of the angular relationship between the optical camera axes of the cameras 61 and 63 in the two active sensing heads.
  • the circuit board 75 includes a digital signal processor (DSP) or other image processor type circuit and an associated data/program memory 91.
  • DSP digital signal processor
  • each camera 61, 63 supplies digital image data to the image processing circuitry 89.
  • the active sensing head 55 also includes the camber tilt sensor 79 and the pitch tilt sensor 77. These inclinometer elements supply the gravity angle measurements (see discussion of FIGS. 5 and 6 ) to the processor 89.
  • the image processing circuitry 89 performs one or more operations on the data and supplies the data to a communications interface 93, for transmission to the host computer system 100.
  • the image processing operations of the circuit 89 may involve formatting various data for communication.
  • the processor 89 may implement some degree of pre-processing before transmission to the host computer system 100.
  • image pre-processing may include gradient computation, background subtraction and/or run-length encoding or other data compression (see e.g. U.S. Pat. No. 6,871,409 by Robb et al. ).
  • the processor 89 may also process the image data to some degree in response to the tilt data from the tilt sensors 77, 79 and/or the spatial relationship measurement data. Alternatively, the tilt and cross position data may simply be forwarded to the host computer for use in further processing of the image data.
  • the processor 89 in one of the active heads may be configured to receive data from the other head and perform wheel alignment parameter computations, internally, and then send only the vehicle measurement results to the host computer system 100. Moreover, processor 89 in one of the active heads may be configured to calculate all alignment values and also generate the user interface. In this case the active head may act as a web server to serve web pages that implement the user interface for the wheel alignment system, and the host computer may consist of any general purpose computer with a web browser and no wheel alignment specific software. However, to minimize cost, the major portion of the data processing may be performed at the host, in which case the processing by (and thus complexity of) the DSP/processing circuit 89 may be kept to a minimum.
  • the processor 89 or another controller (not separately shown) on the board 75 also provides control over operations of the active sensing head 55.
  • the control element (processor 89 or other controller) will control the timing and intensity of emissions by the LED array 83 and the IR LED 85 as well as the timing and possibly other operational parameters of the camera 81 and the linear image sensor 87.
  • the active sensing head 55 also includes a keypad 74 for user activation of the head 55, and the processor 89 or other controller will sense and respond to inputs via the keypad 74.
  • the computer communication interface 93 provides two-way data communications for the components of the active sensing head 55 with the host computer 100 ( FIG. 3 ) and in some configurations between the active heads.
  • the communications interface 93 conforms to an appropriate data protocol standard and provides a coupling to a desired physical media, to enable data communication to and from the host computer 100 at desired speeds and in a manner desired for the particular installation.
  • the host communications interface may be a USB interface with a USB connector for cable connection to a matching interface in the host computer 100.
  • Electronic circuits on board 75 as well as elements of image sensing module 81 and spatial relationship sensor module 85 receive power from a supply 94. Any conventional supply of an adequate level of voltage and current may be used. If system 50 uses cables, the supply may run from a conventional AC power grid or receive power over USB or Ethernet cabling. If heads 55 and 57 are wireless, the power supply may utilize battery power, either from rechargeable or disposable batteries. Alternatively, power storage media for wireless heads may consists of super-capacitors.
  • host computer system 100 processes data from the active sensing heads 55, 57 and provides the user interface for the system 50.
  • Host computer system 100 performs the disclosed short rolling runout calculations described herein, and displays the results (i.e., the true camber and toe) for the user.
  • data processing could be done in a DSP or the like in one or more of the active sensing heads 55, 57.
  • main processing power may be provided by the host computer system 100 or similar data processing equipment.
  • the system 100 may be implemented by a desktop type personal computer (PC) or other computer device such as a notebook computer, UMPC (ultra mobile PC), or similar device.
  • PC personal computer
  • UMPC ultra mobile PC
  • a client server arrangement also could be used, in which case the server would perform the host processing and one of the active heads or another user device would act as a client to provide the user interface.
  • the server would perform the host processing and one of the active heads or another user device would act as a client to provide the user interface.
  • Computer system 100 includes a central processing unit (CPU) 101 and associated elements for providing a user interface.
  • the CPU section 101 includes a bus 102 or other communication mechanism for communicating information, and a processor 104 coupled with the bus 102 for processing information.
  • Computer system 100 also includes a main memory 106, such as a random access memory (RAM) or other dynamic storage device, coupled to bus 102 for storing information and instructions to be executed by processor 104.
  • Main memory 106 also may be used for storing temporary variables or other intermediate information during execution of instructions by processor 104.
  • Computer system 100 further includes a read only memory (ROM) 108 or other static storage device coupled to bus 102 for storing static information and instructions for processor 104.
  • ROM read only memory
  • a storage device 110 such as a magnetic disk or optical disk, is provided and coupled to bus 102 for storing information and instructions. Although only one is shown, many computer systems include two or more storage devices 110.
  • the illustrated embodiment of the computer system 100 also provides a local user interface, for example, so that the system appears as a personal computer or workstation as might be used in a wheel alignment bay or an auto service shop.
  • the computer system 100 may be coupled via bus 102 to a display 112, such as a cathode ray tube (CRT) or flat panel display, for displaying information to a computer user.
  • An input device 114 is coupled to bus 102 for communicating information and command selections to processor 104.
  • cursor control 116 is Another type of user input device, such as a mouse, a trackball, or cursor direction keys for communicating direction information and command selections to processor 104, which the CPU 101 in turn uses for controlling cursor movement on display 112.
  • the cursor input device 116 typically has two degrees of freedom in two axes, a first axis (e.g., x) and a second axis (e.g., y), that allows the device to specify positions in a plane.
  • the couplings between the user interface elements 112-116 and the CPU 101 may be wired or may use optical or radio frequency wireless communication technologies.
  • the CPU 101 also includes one or more input/output interfaces for communications, shown by way of example as an interface 118 for two-way data communications with the active sensing heads 55 and 57.
  • the interface 118 enables the CPU to receive image data, spatial relationship measurement data and tilt data from the active sensing heads 55 and 57.
  • the interface 118 also allows the host computer system 100 to send operational commands and possibly software downloads to the active sensing heads 55 and 57.
  • the communications interface 118 may be a USB interface with a USB connector for cable connection to matching interfaces 93 in the active sensing heads 55, 57.
  • another communication interface may provide communication via a network, if desired.
  • Such an additional interface may be a modem, an Ethernet card or any other appropriate data communications device.
  • the physical links to and from the additional communication interface(s) may be optical, wired, or wireless.
  • the alignment system 50 uses the computer system 100 for processing data from the heads 55, 57 to derive desired alignment measurements from the data provided by the heads, and to provide the user interface for the system 50.
  • the computer system 100 typically runs a variety of applications programs and stores data, enabling one or more interactions via the user interface, provided through elements such as 112-116 to implement the desired processing.
  • the programming will include appropriate code to process the data received from the particular implementation of the heads 55, 57, including computations to derive desired vehicle wheel alignment measurement parameters from the various data from the heads 55 and 57.
  • the host computer 100 will typically run a general purpose operating system and an application or shell specifically adapted to perform the alignment related data processing and provide the user interface for input and output of desired information for alignment measurements and related services. Since it is a general purpose system, the system 100 may run any one or more of a wide range of other desirable application programs.
  • the components contained in the computer system 100 are those typically found in general purpose computer systems used as servers, workstations, personal computers, network terminals, and the like. In fact, these components are intended to represent a broad category of such computer components that are well known in the art.
  • the relevant programming for the wheel alignment application may reside on one or more of several different media.
  • some or all of the programming may be stored on a hard disk or other type of storage device 110 and loaded into the Main Memory 106 in the CPU 101 for execution by the processor 104.
  • the programming also may reside on or be transported by other media for uploading into the system 100, to essentially install and/or upgrade the programming thereof.
  • all or portions of the executable code or data for any or all of the software elements may reside in physical media or be carried by electromagnetic media or be transported via a variety of different media to program the particular system and/or the electronics of the active sensing heads 55, 57.
  • ⁇ As used herein, terms such as computer or machine "readable medium” therefore refer to any medium that participates in providing instructions to a processor for execution. Such a medium may take many forms, including but not limited to, non-volatile media, volatile media, and transmission media (e.g. wires, fibers or the like) as well as signals of various types that may carry data or instructions between systems or between system components.
  • Runout compensation for the heads could be performed as with traditional conventional alignment heads by elevating the rear wheels and using the camber sensors to measure the runout vector then elevating the front wheels and using cameras to image the targets as they rotate about the front wheel's axis.
  • An alternate method would be to avoid elevating the wheels by rolling the vehicle along the lift and performing the runout measurements on the heads with the inclinometers as the track cameras image the front targets as well as fixed targets on the lift, vehicle or other stationary object in order to establish the fixed coordinate system.
  • the rear heads 55, 57 incorporate inclinometer type tilt sensors to measure the relative camber and pitch angles of each rear head to gravity. Once runout is taken and the inclinometer angle values are measured, each head's orientation to gravity could be processed to relate each track facing camera's optical axis to gravity. Using the relationship of the track facing camera to gravity and the measured relationship of the front target to the track facing camera, the relationship of the front target to gravity can be calculated. A spatial relationship is measured by the sensors 65 and 67, to determine the spatial relationship between the track cameras 61 and 63.
  • Front toe, caster, and SAI would be measured using techniques similar to those embodied in an imaging aligner, such as the V3D aligner.
  • the rear thrust angle, each rear individual toe, and the horizontal angular relationship of the track cameras to each other, would be derived from the measurements obtained by the rear spatial relationship sensors.
  • the inclinometers would relate each track camera to each other through the common gravity vector references. With the track cameras effectively related to each other along the axis of the rear thrust line, each front target's location and orientation can be determined in a coordinate system that is directly related to the thrust angle and to gravity.
  • Calibration may be performed by mounting each rear head on a straight calibration bar in much the same way that the current conventional heads are calibrated.
  • the bar is first rotated to compensate for runout.
  • the zero offset of the rear spatial relationship sensors can then be set and by leveling the calibration bar, each camber sensor zero offset can be set.
  • the pitch zero offset is set by leveling the head with a precision level bubble and recording the pitch inclinometer value.
  • Enhanced camera calibration may be achieved by adding another calibration bar adapted to mount the front targets in view of the track cameras (see e.g. U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2004/0244463 by James Dale, Jr. ).
  • the track cameras measure the orientation of the front targets as the targets and bar are rotated about the axis of the front calibration bar.
  • the relationship of one camera to the other may be calculated and thus the relationship of each camera to the rear spatial relationship checked or calibrated.
  • the fixed relationship of each track camera to the local inclinometers may also be checked. This redundant check could possibly constitute an ISO check for customers that require measurement accuracy traceability.
  • small targets may be affixed to each front turntable allowing for an additional measurement or cross check of turn angle.
  • the V3D ride height pointer may also be used to measure front body points for ride height or other body index purposes.
  • An image sensor is one type of spatial relationship sensor.
  • An image sensor may consist of a camera with a two dimensional array of sensing elements that produces data representative of an image expected to contain a target within the field of view of the sensor. The data from the image sensor can be processed to determine position and orientation information related to the viewed target and thus the head, wheel or other object with which the target is associated.
  • An example of a prior art image sensor is the camera used in the Visualiner 3D commercially available from John Bean Company, Conway, Ark., a division of Snap-on Incorporated.
  • An angle sensor is another type of applicable spatial relationship sensor. An angle sensor produces data representing the angle from the sensor relative to a point.
  • Various types of angle sensors are generally known.
  • One example of an angle sensor is the linear CCD sensor as used in the Visualiner available from John Bean Company.
  • FIGS. 8 to 10 are views/diagrams similar to those of FIGS. 2 , 4 and 7 , except that the illustrations of this second implementation show such an alternate technology using an target and image sensor for the spatial relationship sensing function. Wheels and elements similar to those of the implementation of FIGS. 2 , 4 and 7 are similarly numbered and are constructed and operate in essentially the same fashion as discussed above.
  • This example uses passive two-dimensional targets 51 and 53 on the front wheels 41 and 43; and it uses active heads 55' and 57' on the rear wheels for the measurements alongside the vehicle tracks, much as in the example of FIG.
  • the rear active sensing heads use cameras 61, 63 or similar 2D image sensors to obtain images of the targets on the front heads 51, 53 and determine the relative positions and orientations of the targets with respect to the active heads, as discussed in detail above relative to FIG. 3 .
  • the spatial relationship of the two active heads 55', 57' is determined by at least one 2D image sensor 97, which obtains images of a 2D target 67' mounted on the opposite active head.
  • the active head 57' has an associated target 67' similar to one of the targets on head 51 and 53, but the head 57' does not include a sensor for the spatial relationship measurement function.
  • the active sensing head 55' uses an image processing type approach to the spatial relationship measurement across the rear of the vehicle based on imaging the target 67'.
  • the image sensor 97 typically would be similar to the cameras or the like used as 2D image sensors in the example of FIG. 3 .
  • the spatial relationship sensor 95 uses an image sensing module similar to the track facing image sensor module 81.
  • the spatial relationship image sensing module 95 includes a digital camera 97 and an LED array 99.
  • the LED array 99 serves as an illuminator.
  • the LED array 99 produces infrared (IR) illumination.
  • the other rear head 57' includes an IR sensitive retro-reflective target 67' ( FIG. 8 ) to be illuminated by the LED array 99, which in turn is sensed by the camera 97.
  • the spatial relationship camera 97 images the target 67' positioned on the companion head (across the rear of the vehicle) in place of the other spatial relationship sensor. Both cameras 61 and 97 could share a common processing board in the one head while the other head may simply use a single camera (for track) and a target (for cross). Processing of the target image obtained by camera 97 can compute the angular spatial relationship between the rear heads, in much the same way as the images from the active head cameras were processed to determine relative angle and/or position of the wheel mounted targets in the examples of FIGS. 2 and 3 . Rather than measuring a spatial relationship angle as in the previous example, the image sensing module and associated image processing measures the 3D spatial relationship of the target on the opposite active head. For additional information regarding measurement based on processing of images of targets, attention again is directed to U.S. Pat. No. 5,724,743 to Jackson .
  • At least one active head contains gravity sensors to measure camber and pitch of the head. Since the imaging of the target mounted on the opposite active head allows the system to obtain a three-dimensional (3D) spatial relationship measurement between the two active heads, only one active head is required to have gravity sensors. Otherwise, the structure, operation and computations are generally similar to those of the earlier examples.
  • the active heads have been associated with the rear wheels, and the targets have been associated with the front wheels of the vehicle.
  • the targets have been associated with the front wheels of the vehicle.
  • imaging sensors with other sensors for determining the spatial relationship that may be used.
  • U.S. Patent 7,313,869 to Rogers are described and shown in U.S. Patent 7,313,869 to Rogers .
  • FIGS. 11A-B An example of the methodology of the present disclosure will now be described with reference to the flow charts of FIGS. 11A-B .
  • the calculations described herein can be performed by a computer, such as computer 100 shown in FIG. 3 .
  • a computer such as computer 100 shown in FIG. 3 .
  • a set of camber and toe measurement values are acquired for the front wheels (i.e., the wheels carrying the passive targets) in a conventional manner.
  • the disclosed short rolling runout process is performed for alignment of the rear wheels of the vehicle (i.e., the wheels carrying the active heads).
  • the count index is checked at step 1120, and if i is less than N, the count index is incremented by 1 at step 1125, the wheels are rolled to a rollback position at step 1110, and steps 1115 and 1120 are repeated.
  • the amount of rollback can be more than 0° and less than 180° from the last wheel position; e.g., about 20° to about 40° from the last wheel position.
  • the respective computed runouts are then subtracted from the measured camber and toe measurement values at the current wheel angle to obtain true camber and toe values for the pair of rear wheels (step 1140), and the true camber and toe values are displayed on a display (step 1145), such as display 112 shown in FIG. 3 .
  • the flow chart of FIG. 11B shows details of an exemplary computation of best fit sine waves for camber and toe measurements using a matrix least squares analysis, performed at step 1130 of FIG. 11A .
  • parameter ⁇ is computed, which is a matrix of changes in camber and toe measurements for all M measurement sets.
  • parameter ⁇ a matrix of trigonometric response functions to wheel angle for all M measurement sets.
  • the parameter vector ⁇ is found that best maps inputs ⁇ to measured outputs ⁇ (step 1130c).
  • Parameters in ⁇ are regression coefficients that best characterize the sine wave of measured cambers and toes (step 1130d).
  • parameter vector ⁇ is converted to the runout sine wave amplitude A and phase angle ⁇ . The process of FIG. 11A then resumes at step 1135.
  • the system comprises a pair of passive heads 51, 53, each comprising a target, for mounting in association with a first pair of wheels 41, 43 of a vehicle that is to be measured by operation of the wheel alignment system; and a pair of active sensing heads 55, 57 for mounting in association with a second pair of wheels 45, 47 of the vehicle.
  • Each respective one of the active sensing heads 55, 57 comprises an image sensor 61, 63 for producing image data including a representation of an image of one of the targets 51, 53, and at least one of the active sensing heads 55, 57 comprises at least one tilt sensor 77, 79 for sensing a tilt angle of the one active sensing head when the one active sensing head is mounted on a wheel of the vehicle.
  • Active sensing heads 55, 57 further comprise means for determining a spatial relationship between the active sensing heads 55, 57 when the active sensing heads 55, 57 are mounted on wheels of the vehicle.
  • the means for determining the spatial relationship comprises two relative angle sensing modules 65, 67, one module being associated with each of the active sensing heads 55, 57.
  • Each of the sensing modules 65, 67 comprises an emitter for emitting a beam of light, an aperture, and an image sensor for sensing an angle of an incoming beam of light through the aperture.
  • the means for determining the spatial relationship comprises an illuminator and a camera mounted on a first one of the active sensing heads 55, 57.
  • the alignment system further includes a display 112 and a computer 100 for processing image data relating to observation of the targets 51, 53, the sensed tilt angle, and relationship data from the means for determining the spatial relationship 65, 67, to compute a plurality of sets of camber and toe measurement values for the second pair of vehicle wheels 45, 47 when the active sensing heads 55, 57 are mounted on the second pair of vehicle wheels 45, 47.
  • Each set of camber and toe measurement values are computed at a different wheel angle obtained by a user rolling the wheels from an initial wheel angle.
  • One of the wheel angles is a current wheel angle.
  • the computer 100 is also for calculating best fit sine waves for camber and toe using a least squares analysis and the sets of camber and toe measurement values (see FIG. 11A , step 1130); computing camber runout and toe runout at the current wheel angle using the calculated sine waves (see FIG. 11A , step 1135); subtracting the respective computed runouts from the measured camber and toe measurement values at the current wheel angle to obtain true camber and toe values for the second pair of wheels (see FIG. 11A , step 1140); and causing the true camber and toe values for the second pair of wheels to be displayed on the display 112 (see FIG. 11A , step 1145).
  • the computer 100 is for computing the sets of camber and toe measurement values by computing a set of camber and toe measurement values at the initial wheel angle; computing a set of camber and toe measurement values at a first rollback wheel angle after the user rolls the wheels from the initial angle to the first rollback wheel angle; and computing a set of camber and toe measurement values at a second rollback wheel angle after the user rolls the wheels from the first rollback wheel angle to the second rollback wheel angle.
  • the second rollback wheel angle is the current wheel angle.
  • the disclosed short rolling runout procedure performed by computer 100 advantageously enables the user to roll the wheels more than 0° and less than 180° from the initial angle to the first rollback wheel angle (e.g., about 20° to about 40°), and roll the wheels more than 0° and less than 180° from the first rollback wheel angle to the second rollback wheel angle (e.g., about 20° to about 40°).
  • the rollback distance is shortened and does not require a long lift, and the runout of the rear wheels 45, 47 can be more easily determined.
  • the active sensing heads 55, 57 are not mounted on the rear wheels 45, 47. Rather, they are placed on the rack (not shown) nearby the rear wheels 45, 47, such that they are stationary relative to the vehicle, the means for determining a spatial relationship 65, 67 between the active sensing heads 55, 57 is functional, and the targets of the passive heads 51, 53 are visible to the image sensors 61, 63.
  • the computer 100 processes image data relating to observation of the targets 51, 53 and relationship data from the means for determining the spatial relationship 65, 67, to compute a plurality of sets of camber and toe measurement values for the front wheels 41, 43, each set being computed at a different wheel angle obtained by a user rolling the wheels from an initial wheel angle, wherein one of the wheel angles is a current wheel angle.
  • Computer 100 then performs the rolling runout analysis previously described with reference to FIGS. 11A-B . More particularly, computer 100 calculates best fit sine waves for camber and toe using a least squares analysis and the sets of camber and toe measurement values; computes camber runout and toe runout at the current wheel angle using the calculated sine waves; subtracts the respective computed runouts from the measured camber and toe measurement values at the current wheel angle to obtain true camber and toe values for the front wheels 41, 43; and causes the true camber and toe values for the front wheels 41, 43 to be displayed on the display 112.

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  • Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
  • General Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
  • Length Measuring Devices By Optical Means (AREA)
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Claims (15)

  1. Procédé comportant :
    l'acquisition (1100) d'une pluralité de jeux de valeurs de mesure de courbure et de braquage pour une paire de roues (21, 24, 41, 43 ; 26, 28, 45, 47) de véhicule, chaque jeu étant acquis à un angle de roue mesuré différent, obtenu par roulement des roues (21, 24, 41, 43 ; 26, 28, 45, 47) à partir d'un angle de roue initial, dans lequel l'un des angles de roue est un angle de roue actuel ;
    le chiffrage (1130) des ondes sinusoïdales les mieux adaptées pour la courbure et le braquage à l'aide d'une analyse des moindres carrés et des jeux de valeurs de mesure de courbure, de valeurs de mesure de braquage et d'angles de roue mesurés, obtenus par roulement des roues (21, 24, 41, 43 ; 26, 28, 45, 47) ;
    le calcul (1135) d'un voile de courbure et d'un voile de braquage, à l'angle de roue actuel, à l'aide des ondes sinusoïdales chiffrées ;
    la soustraction (1140) des voiles calculés respectifs à partir des valeurs de mesure de courbure et de braquage mesurées, à l'angle de roue actuel, afin d'obtenir des valeurs de courbure et de braquage réelles pour la paire de roues (21, 24, 41, 43 ; 26, 28, 45, 47) ; et
    l'affichage (1145) des valeurs de courbure et de braquage réelles.
  2. Procédé selon la revendication 1, comportant l'acquisition des jeux de valeurs de mesure de courbure et de braquage par :
    acquisition d'un jeu de valeurs de mesure de courbure et de braquage à l'angle de roue initial ;
    roulement (1110) des roues (21, 24, 41, 43 ; 26, 28, 45, 47) de l'angle initial vers un premier angle de roue de retour ;
    acquisition (1115) d'un jeu de valeurs de mesure de courbure et de braquage au premier angle de roue de retour ;
    roulement (1110) des roues (21, 24, 41, 43 ; 26, 28, 45, 47) du premier angle de roue de retour à un second angle de roue de retour ; et acquisition d'un jeu de valeurs de mesure de courbure et de braquage au second angle de roue de retour ;
    dans lequel le second angle de roue de retour est l'angle de roue actuel.
  3. Procédé selon la revendication 1, comportant l'acquisition d'un des jeux de valeurs de mesure de courbure et de braquage par roulement des roues (21, 24, 41, 43 ; 26, 28, 45, 47) d'environ 20° à environ 40° à partir de l'angle de roue initial.
  4. Procédé selon la revendication 2, comportant le roulement des roues (21, 24, 41, 43 ; 26, 28, 45, 47) d'environ 20° à environ 40°, de l'angle initial jusqu'au premier angle de roue de retour et le roulement des roues (21, 24, 41, 43 ; 26, 28, 45, 47) d'environ 20° à environ 40°, du premier angle de roue de retour au second angle de roue de retour.
  5. Procédé selon la revendication 1, comportant le chiffrage des ondes sinusoïdales les mieux adaptées pour la courbure et le braquage à l'aide d'une analyse des moindres carrés de matrice.
  6. Procédé selon la revendication 1, dans lequel l'acquisition des jeux de valeurs de mesure de courbure et de braquage comporte :
    l'obtention d'une image d'une cible associée à une première roue du véhicule (20), à partir d'un capteur d'images dans une première tête montée associée à une deuxième roue du véhicule (20) afin de produire des premières données d'image ;
    la détermination d'un angle d'inclinaison de la première tête ;
    l'obtention d'une image d'une cible en conjonction avec une troisième roue du véhicule (20), à partir d'un capteur d'images dans une seconde tête montée en conjonction avec une quatrième roue du véhicule (20) afin de produire des secondes données d'image ;
    la détermination d'un angle d'inclinaison de la seconde tête ;
    la mesure d'une relation spatiale entre les première et seconde têtes ; et le traitement des premières et secondes données d'image, des angles d'inclinaison et des mesures de relation spatiale afin de calculer les valeurs de mesure de courbure et de braquage pour les deuxième et quatrième roues du véhicule (20) ;
    dans lequel la paire de roues (21, 24, 41, 43 ; 26, 28, 45, 47) de véhicule comporte les deuxième et quatrième roues du véhicule (20).
  7. Procédé selon la revendication 1, dans lequel l'acquisition des jeux de valeurs de mesure de courbure et de braquage comporte :
    l'obtention d'une image d'une cible associée à une première roue du véhicule (20), à partir d'un capteur d'images dans une première tête disposée stationnaire par rapport au véhicule (20) afin de produire des premières données d'image ;
    l'obtention d'une image d'une cible associée à une deuxième roue du véhicule (20), à partir d'un capteur d'images dans une deuxième tête disposée stationnaire par rapport au véhicule (20) afin de produire des secondes données d'image ;
    la mesure d'une relation spatiale entre les première et seconde têtes ; et
    le traitement des premières et secondes données d'image et de la mesure de relation spatiale afin de calculer les valeurs de mesure de courbure et de braquage pour les première et deuxième roues du véhicule (20) ;
    dans lequel la paire de roues (21, 24, 41, 43 ; 26, 28, 45, 47) de véhicule comporte les première et deuxième roues du véhicule (20).
  8. Procédé selon la revendication 2, comportant le roulement des roues d'environ 20° à environ 40°, de l'angle initial jusqu'au premier angle de roue de retour, et le roulement des roues à plus de 0° et moins de 180°, du premier angle de roue de retour jusqu'au second angle de roue de retour.
  9. Système d'alignement de roue comportant :
    une paire de têtes passives (21, 23, 51, 53), chacune comportant une cible, pour un montage en association avec une première paire de roues (22, 24, 41, 43) d'un véhicule (20) qui doit être mesurée par actionnement du système d'alignement de roues ;
    une paire de têtes de détection active (25, 27, 55, 57) pour un montage en association avec une seconde paire de roues (26, 28, 45, 47) du véhicule (20), chaque tête respective parmi les têtes de détection active (25, 27, 55, 57) comportant un capteur d'images (29, 31, 61, 63) afin de produire des données d'image incluant une représentation d'une image de l'une des cibles, au moins l'une des têtes de détection active (25, 27, 55, 57) comportant au moins un capteur d'inclinaison (37, 77, 79) afin de détecter un angle d'inclinaison de la tête de détection active lorsque la tête de détection active est montée sur une roue du véhicule (20) ;
    un moyen (65, 67) pour déterminer une relation spatiale entre les têtes de détection active (25, 27, 55, 57) lorsque les têtes de détection active (25, 27, 55, 57) sont montées sur des roues (26, 28, 45, 47) du véhicule (20) ;
    un afficheur (112) ; et
    un ordinateur (100) configuré pour :
    traiter des données d'image relatives à l'observation des cibles, l'angle d'inclinaison détecté et des données de relation provenant du moyen (65, 67) pour déterminer la relation spatiale, afin de calculer une pluralité de jeux de valeurs de mesure de courbure et de braquage pour la seconde paire de roues (26, 28, 45, 47) de véhicule lorsque les têtes de détection active (25, 27, 55, 57) sont montées sur la seconde paire de roues (26, 28, 45, 47) de véhicule, chaque jeu étant calculé à un angle de roue mesuré différent, obtenu par un utilisateur faisant rouler les roues à partir d'un angle de roue initial, dans lequel l'un des angles de roue est un angle de roue actuel ;
    chiffrer les ondes sinusoïdales les mieux adaptées pour la courbure et le braquage à l'aide d'une analyse des moindres carrés, ainsi que des jeux de valeurs de mesure de courbure, des valeurs de mesure de braquage et des angles de roue mesurés, obtenus par roulement des roues ;
    calculer le voile de courbure et le voile de braquage, à l'angle de roue actuel, à l'aide des ondes sinusoïdales chiffrées ;
    soustraire les voiles calculés respectifs des valeurs de mesure de courbure et de braquage mesurées, à l'angle de roue actuel, afin d'obtenir des valeurs de courbure et de braquage réelles pour la seconde paire de roues (26, 28, 45, 47) ; et
    amener les valeurs de courbure et de braquage réelles pour la seconde paire de roues (26, 28, 45, 47) à être affichées sur l'afficheur (112).
  10. Système d'alignement de roues selon la revendication 9, dans lequel le moyen (65, 67) pour déterminer la relation spatiale comporte deux modules de détection d'angle relatif, un module étant associé à chacune des têtes de détection active (25, 27, 55, 57).
  11. Système d'alignement de roues selon la revendication 10, dans lequel chacun des modules de détection comporte : un émetteur afin d'émettre un faisceau de lumière ; une ouverture (86) ; et un capteur d'images (87) afin de détecter un angle d'un faisceau de lumière entrant à travers l'ouverture (86).
  12. Système d'alignement de roues selon la revendication 9, dans lequel le moyen (65, 67) pour déterminer la relation spatiale comporte un bloc d'éclairage et une caméra montés sur une première tête parmi les têtes de détection active (25, 27, 55, 57).
  13. Système d'alignement de roues selon la revendication 9, dans lequel l'ordinateur (100) est configuré pour calculer les jeux de valeurs de mesure de courbure et de braquage par :
    calcul d'un jeu de valeurs de mesure de courbure et de braquage à l'angle de roue initial ; calcul d'un jeu de valeurs de mesure de courbure et de braquage à un premier angle de roue de retour après que l'utilisateur a fait rouler les roues, de l'angle initial jusqu'au premier angle de roue de retour ; et
    le calcul d'un jeu de valeurs de mesure de courbure et de braquage à un second angle de roue de retour après que l'utilisateur a fait rouler les roues, du premier angle de roue de retour au second angle de roue de retour ;
    dans lequel le second angle de roue de retour est l'angle de roue actuel.
  14. Système d'alignement de roues selon la revendication 9, comportant le calcul de l'un des jeux de valeurs de mesure de courbure et de braquage après que l'utilisateur a fait rouler les roues d'environ 20° à environ 40° à partir de l'angle de roue initial.
  15. Système d'alignement de roues selon la revendication 9, dans lequel, lorsque la paire de têtes de détection active (25, 27, 55, 57) sont disposées stationnaires par rapport au véhicule (20) de sorte que le moyen (65, 67) pour déterminer une relation spatiale entre les têtes de détection active (25, 27, 55, 57) soit fonctionnel, l'ordinateur (100) est configuré pour :
    traiter des données d'image relatives à l'observation des cibles et des données de relation à partir du moyen (65, 67) pour déterminer la relation spatiale, afin de calculer une pluralité de jeux de valeurs de mesure de courbure et de braquage pour la première paire de roues (22, 24, 41, 43) de véhicule, chaque jeu étant calculé à un angle de roue différent, obtenu par un utilisateur faisant rouler les roues à partir d'un angle initial, dans lequel l'un des angles de roue est un angle de roue actuel ;
    chiffrer les ondes sinusoïdales les mieux adaptées pour la courbure et le braquage à l'aide d'une analyse des moindres carrés et des jeux de valeurs de mesure de courbure et de braquage ;
    calculer le voile de courbure et le voile de braquage, à l'angle de roue actuel, à l'aide des ondes sinusoïdales chiffrées ;
    soustraire les voiles calculés respectifs des valeurs de mesure de courbure et de braquage mesurées, à l'angle de roue actuel, afin d'obtenir des valeurs de courbure et de braquage réelles pour la première paire de roues (22, 24, 41, 43) ; et
    amener les valeurs de courbure et de braquage réelles pour la première paire de roues (22, 24, 41, 43) à s'afficher sur l'afficheur (112).
EP13781271.5A 2012-04-27 2013-04-29 Procédé et appareil améliorés pour effectuer une compensation de voile de roulement pour alignement de roues de véhicule Active EP2841876B1 (fr)

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US201261639598P 2012-04-27 2012-04-27
PCT/US2013/038617 WO2013163643A1 (fr) 2012-04-27 2013-04-29 Procédé et appareil améliorés pour effectuer une compensation de voile de roulement pour alignement de roues de véhicule

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EP2841876A1 (fr) 2015-03-04
US20130307967A1 (en) 2013-11-21
WO2013163643A1 (fr) 2013-10-31
US9212907B2 (en) 2015-12-15
CN104380038A (zh) 2015-02-25
CN104380038B (zh) 2017-08-11
EP2841876A4 (fr) 2015-10-28

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